Peter James has penetrated the inner workings of police procedures, and the inner thoughts and attitudes of real detectives, as no English crime writer before him. His hero, Roy Grace, may not be the most lively cop, nor the most damaged by drink, weight or misery, but he’s one of the most believable (The Times)

Peter James is one of the best crime writers in the business (Karin Slaughter)

James just gets better and better and deserves the success he has achieved with this first-class series (Independent on Sunday)

Meticulous research gives his prose great authenticity . . . James manages to add enough surprises and drama that by the end you’re rooting for the police and really don’t know if they will finally get their men (Sunday Express)

No one can deny James’s success as a crime novelist . . . The Grace stories almost always go to the top of the bestseller lists, not least because they are supremely well-told. James writes meticulously researched police procedurals, so informed that you can smell the canteen coffee . . . enthralling (Daily Mail)

In my thirty four years of policing, never have I come across a writer who so accurately depicts “The Job“ (Detective Investigator Pat Lanigan, Office of the District Attorney, NYPD)

Hard to believe that this is the 14th book in the Roy Grace series by Peter James. The writing and the character never gets stale for me.

Out of all my favourite crime writers, Peter James is the only one whose books I’m up to date with, because I can’t wait for the next one to come out.

I would go as far as to say that this is the best one yet in the series. Always meticulously researched by the author who spends considerable time with the Brighton police force, absorbing the atmosphere of police work and procedure.

There’s a lot to grasp in this book and it is action packed and riveting.

The story is about the son of a prominent local businessman Kipp Brown, whose son Mungo goes missing when they’re attending a football match together and Kipp’s attention is diverted momentarily.

It soon becomes clear via a note sent to Kipp that Mungo has been kidnapped and his father warned not to contact the police.

Roy Grace however is brought into the picture and working with some familiar characters in previous novels takes on the investigation which leads him on a chase and encounters with some very undesirable characters.

Scary stuff!

An enjoyable rollercoaster ride with some familiar characters along the way. What’s not to like.

James was educated at Charterhouse School and went on to Ravensbourne Film School. For a brief period of time whilst at film school James worked as Orson Welles’ house cleaner. Subsequently he spent several years in North America, working as a screenwriter and film producer, beginning in Canada in 1970 working first as a gofer, then writer, on the children’s television series Polka Dot Door.[1]

James has written 35 novels, including the International best-selling crime thriller series featuring Brighton-based Detective Superintendent Roy Grace, which have sold 19 million copies worldwide and have given him twelve consecutive UK Sunday Times number ones, as well as number ones in Germany, France, Russia and Canada, and he is also a New York Times best-seller. James’s books have been translated into 37 languages. In the UK and US they are published by Macmillan Publishers. In 1993 Penguin Books published his novel Host on two floppy discs (in addition to conventional print formats) as has been called the world’s first electronic novel; a copy of it is in the Science Museum.[3] James has written supernatural thrillers, spy fiction, science-based thrillers, a children’s novel, and the novella The Perfect Murder, which was 15 weeks at number one on iBooks and 45 weeks in their top 10, was adapted by Shaun McKenna into a stage play which had a smash hit tour in 2014 and returned to stage in 2016 starring Shane Richie and Jessie Wallace. Dead Simple, the second adaptation of his work, also by Shaun McKenna toured nationwide during 2015 with an all-star cast including Tina Hobley, Jamie Lomas and Rik Makarem. It is also in development for both film and television. Not Dead Enough, his third stage adaptation, starring Shane Richie, Bill Ward and Laura Whitmore completed a 24-week national UK tour in the first half of 2017. James has served two consecutive terms as chairman of the UK Crime Writers Association, and is Overseas Vice-President of International Thriller Writers in the USA.

James is Patron of the Sussex Police Charitable Trust, Patron of Brighton & Hove Samaritans, Patron of the Brighton Greyhound Owners Association Retired Greyhound Trust, Patron of Brighton and Hove Independent Mediation Service, Patron of Relate in Sussex, Patron of Terrys Cross House, Patron of Little Green Pig, National Co-Patron of Neighbourhood Watch, Co-Patron of Sussex Crimestoppers, Honorary Patron for the South Mid Sussex Community First Responders, Vice-President of The Old Police Cells Museum in Brighton. He is an Ambassador for the University of Brighton, and a Martlets Hospice Champion (which he also supports through his annual Peter James Golf Classic). He supports Action Medical Research.[5] He also supports and works with The Reading Agency, a charity with a mission to give everyone an equal chance in life by helping people become confident and enthusiastic readers.

James and his publisher, Macmillan, donated a police car to Sussex Police in 2008[6] and donated a second one in 2014 on which the livery (alongside the police markings) changes each year to match the jacket of his latest Roy Grace novel.

▪ 1967 Charterhouse school poetry prize

▪ 1969 Esquire Magazine International College Film Festival, The Island

▪ 1974 Sitges International Horror Film Festival, Best Foreign Film for Dead of Night